Distinguishing Primary and Secondary Craters using Uplifted Crater Ejectae
Author:
Rachael HachadorianMentors:
- Gwendolyn Barnes, Research Assistant Professor, University of Idaho
- Christine Berven, Associate Professor of Physics, University of Idaho
Five years ago, Dr. Gwen Barnes of the University of Idaho partook in a study that suggested that one could distinguish between a primary crater (a crater formed on a terrestrial surface by a foreign projectile) and a secondary crater (a crater formed by ejected target rock from said primary crater) based solely upon the uplifted crater ejecta. Our main objective was to focus on one specific Lunar Mare, Mare Serenitatis, in hopes that we may more clearly confirm this relation when there is consistency in the target rock. In order to gather a representative data set, we classified and measured over 300 craters using NASA’s LROC and a USGS program known as ISIS, or Integrated Software for Imagers and Spectrometers. Ultimately, narrowing our research to one Mare ended up being detrimental to the study and our results did not match that which was found five years ago. However, we were able to explore a handful of reasons as to why that could be and how we might fix this in future research.